When the ancient Polynesians invented surfing, they often used a paddle to help them navigate. Fast-forward a few millennia, and Stand-Up Paddleboarding, or SUP, finds itself trendy again. Part of its increasing popularity is that standing upright allows surfers to spot waves more easily and thus catch more of them, multiplying the fun factor. Paddling back to the wave becomes less of a strain as well. The ability to cruise along on flat inland water, surveying the sights, is another advantage. Finally, its a good core workout. If youre sold on the idea, schedule an intro SUP lesson, free with board and paddle rental, and you may find yourself riding the waves like a Polynesian king.More

Many of us remember coming home from our elementary schools with freshly glazed pinchpots, cups, or whatever else our young imaginations could conjure up. Saturday mornings at the Randall Museum can bring that memory back, or create a new one for the youngsters. Ceramics make great gifts — especially on Mothers' and Fathers' Day. Hop on board for the Randall's once-weekly class, and for $6 and two weeks to have your work fired and glazed, you'll have all the materials you need.More

Friday, September 4, 2015

BART sucks — let's just get that out there right off the bat. But, in the bay, its pretty much all we've got, so the announced closure of the Transbay BART system (between SF and Oakland) throughout Labor Day Weekend puts a damper on a lot of plans. Especially for music fans who were headed to the delightfully thorough collection of classic and contemporary hip-hop that the Hiero Day 2015 Festival (put on by Oakland's Hieroglyphics crew) has graciously put together for your enjoyment on Monday, Sept. 7. We told you all about it and highlighted some of our picks earlier this week in our Moment of Truth weekly hip-hop column.

It's bad enough there isn't a bike lane on the new Bay Bridge (seriously, WTF?!) but now our only reliable mass transit option to cross the Bay is down? I'm feeling sorta stuck in SF for the holiday, which ain't all that bad, but dammit, I wanna get to Oakland during Labor Day weekend! And I'll be damned if I'm not going to Hiero Day to see the likes of Aceyalone, The Alkaholiks, Peanut Butter Wolf, Zion I, The Coup and every single member of Hieroglyphics crew (unreal). So I did some research on transit options and I'm laying them down below. These are all pretty much interchangeable for Saturday and Sunday, but my timetable info on the public transport option is for Monday, with Hiero Day as the pot of gold across the bridge. Here's what's up:

Lyft or Uber - Not gonna lie, this is probably the option I'll take. I ran a fare calculator on Lyft's website from Market and Van Ness St to 3rd and Chestnut (where Hiero Day is going down) and it came out to $23.33. That's not too bad, amiright? Grab some friends and share the costs, that's like $6 a head and faster than BART fasho. Also, if you're living under a rock and don't have the Lyft app yet, new users can enter in the promo code #HieroDay2015 and get a $20 credit. So find a friend who doesn't have Lyft yet and make them pay for it. Use Uber too if that's your hang, but I'm a Lyft loyalist whenever possible.

AC Transit - Shit, I've never taken AC Transit before in my life. But after looking up schedules and all, it doesn't look all that bad. Take a MUNI line to get downtown to the temporary Transbay terminal on Howard & Main St (a few minute walk from Embarcadero MUNI/BART Station.) Then, hop on the AC Transit O Line (not to be confused with the O Face) towards Fruitvale station, which comes every hour on the hour and get off on 5th & Market in Oakland. You're a nine minute walk from Hiero Day at that point. It's a $4.20 fare [cue stoner laugh]. Here's a screen shot of the AC Transit directions and remember that Hiero Day starts at 11 a.m. and goes 'til 7 a.m., so plan your times accordingly.

BART Lifeline Bus Transit service - Yeah...these SOB's indeed called it a "lifeline" bus service. It runs from the temporary Transbay bus terminal mentioned above and drops you at the 19th St BART Station in Downtown Oakland. That's it. It won't get you to Hiero Day from there, so a long walk or a Lyft is in order. Don't take it unless you have a damn good reason to. AC Transit is a better idea. Also, here's some additional "tips" from BART on how to deal with this headache they've given us on Labor Day weekend.

Drive - Hey... you can always ZipCar it or carpool with some friends. Parking looks more plentiful in Oakland than just about anywhere in SF. But then you gotta worry about not drinking and on a super sunny day (projected at 84 degrees on Monday in Oakland, the hottest day of the week), you're gonna wanna down some Lagunitas brews at the fest. Think twice.

Ferry Service - If you want to start your day at the Ferry Building for coffee, breakfast or whatever, you can take the ferry across the Bay to Jack London Square and then walk for 15 minutes to Hiero Day. Seems pleasant enough. It's $6.40 each way and here's the schedule. You never know, could be a lovely little Labor Day jaunt to go see some hip-hop.

Ok, got all that? Now go get your tickets to Hiero Day if you haven't already!

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Slideshows

Sub Pop recording artists 'clipping.' brought their brand of noise-driven experimental hip hop to the closing night of 2016's San Francisco Electronic Music Fest this past Sunday. The packed Brava Theater hosted an initially seated crowd that ended the night jumping and dancing against the front of the stage. The trio performed a set focused on their recently released Sci-Fi Horror concept album, 'Splendor & Misery', then delved into their dancier and more aggressive back catalogue, and recent single 'Wriggle'.
Opening performances included local experimental electronic duo 'Tujurikkuja' and computer music artist 'Madalyn Merkey.'"